Martha J. Trist Burke’s Notes on Trist Family History

My great grandfather “Nicholas Trist,” (Son of Browse & Elizabeth Trist of the town of Devonshire England) came to America during the Revolution, and was Lieutenant in the “Royal Irish” of
which his brother Browse Trist was Col at Bunker Hill My great grandfather married in Phila a Miss “Elizabeth House,” she was a woman of much ability, & was known to, & respected by, Mr JeffersonMr Monroe, & James Madison; these gentlemen all were her friends personally, and corresponded with her. she
had one child a son “HoreBrowseTrist” born17, he was educated partly in England where he visited his cousins at the old Trist
Estate of “Bowden” in Devonshire, he married in Phila 17 a Miss Mary Brown, a great beauty and a lady of ability, whose mother “Catherine Colquohon” (Calhoun) was of Irish birth & descent, the family being descended from the Earls of “Lennox” “Lennox” she married a Mr Brown & came to America (U. S.) where she had a very large family of Sons & daughters,
her daughter “Mary” married “HoreBrowseTrist Esqr” he moved to Va their eldest son Nicholas P. Trist was born in CharlottesvilleAlbemarle Co Va June 2d 1800. the second sonHoreBrowseTrist Jr was born in Washington D.C.1802 they had no other children, my grandfather bought the Estate of “Birdwood” near Charlottesville Va where he lived until Mr Jefferson appointed him 1st Collector of the Port of “New Orleans,” after the purchase of Louisiana, 1802, he
sold “Birdwood” & removed to La where he died 1804 of Yellow fever; his wife remained in La where she married Mr “Philip Livingston Jones” of New York—he died in a few years leaving no children, he requested that my father should take his name “Philip” which accounts for the P in his name which had been “Nicholas Trist” after his grandfather. My grand-mother after some years married a 3d time A Mr StJulian de Tournillon a french gentleman, who had been saved by a faithful negro from the “Insurrection
in Hayti” & brought to Lamy grandmother had two Children by this marriage Mary de Tournillon who married Dr Thomas Cottman of La & “Julian de Tournillon” who married 1st a Miss “Landry” by whom he had 3 children “Rosella Tournillon,” & “Ada Tournillon” & a son “Julian,” always called “Tournillon.” Rossella married a Mr “Montgomery” of N.O. “Ada” married a Mr “DickBond” of La, she has a son, & Mrs Montgomery has a daughter, my uncle Julian “de Tournillon” married a 2d time a Miss “Pediscloe” he had had by her several sons one named Nick, & one Browse
I believe, what became of “Julian Tournillon” the son of my uncle’s 1st marriage I never knew.

My great grand mother “Mrs Nicholas Trist” née “House”, was livinglived for several years with her mother, My great grand father having almostimmediatelysoon after his marriage given up his commission in the British army, & removed to Louisiana then belonging to “Spain”1 & which was of course “neutral ground,” there he purchased an Estate & prepared a
home for his wife & child; in 187my grandfather being then a small child two young to undertake such a journey my great grandmother left him with her mother in Phila, and set out on a long journey to join her husband in La there is a Journal kept by her giving an acct of this winter journey to “Pittsburgh” on horse back—my great grandmother took with her a young cousin her mother’s niece “PollyStretch” afterwards Mrs Sprogell (mother of MrsPeaco, & Caroline & Mary Sprogell) “Polly” was a brave & [. . .]an unselfish girl or she never would have consented to the hardships & the perils of such a journey.
They rode on horseback to “Pittsburgh” taking 3 weeks for the winter journey, they staid at “Pittsburgh” all winter havingwhile a flat boat was built, on which they were to go down the “Missisippi,” they left in the Spring, and after weeks of perils from Indians, & from “Snags”
in the river, & suffering from heat & musquitoes, they reached Natchez where my poor great grand mother heard of the death of her husband three weeks before; the shock was so great that she fainted and was so long unconscious
that they almost despaired of her recovery; but the brave woman rallied & continued
her sad journey, she arrived at last at the “Home” prepared for her, where she found
everycomfort & elegance of the time; even a trained riding horse which came neighing up to the piazza to receive the
lump of sugar which the servants told her, “Master always gave him, saying “I hope soon that your mistress will be here to give this
with her own hands.” Mrs Trist & her young Cousin Polly remained two years on the Plantation, & in New Orleans, before Mrs Trist could settle “matters.” she wrote to Mr Jefferson saying “that she should lose so much by “exchange” of currency “that she should not
carry away from Louisiana as many dollars as her husband had brought pounds.

Finally after weary delays Mrs Trist & “Polly Stretch” sailed in a Spanish vessel for “the Havana” where they were detained three or four months, waiting for a vessel to take them
to “New York” which they finally reached, having escaped the “Algerine Pirates” which then infested
our waters. Mrs Trist kept a journal during her stay in Louisiana, and giving an account of her story in N.O. & her sea voyage to Havana; her experiences while there, & her “voyage” to “New York” this journal with all of her letters & papers were left with her niece “Mary House” who married “Mr Peachy Gilmer” & lived at “PenPark” in Henry County“Albemarle” Co for some time; cousin Emma Gilmer (Mrs Breckenridge of “Grove Hill” Botetourt Co) wrote me that two trucks of my greatgrandmother’s papers were burnt by the “Yankees”; but I hear that some of the “Gilmer” family have numbers of letters addressed to my greatgrandmotherbyMrJefferson , MrMadison&MrMonroe & other men of “Eminence,” and Cousin “Emma,” says her “Journal” was deeply interesting & mostromantic. Those trunks must have been mines of interestingmatter, and probably of valuablerelics in the shape of StMemin’sCopperplates, & his miniatures of many Interesting persons; I wonder that my father never claimed her papers! which contained all her letters from her husband & son. I have one of my greatgrandfather “Nicholas Trist,” but none of my grandfather. “Mrs John Gilmer” who died at the “Louise Home” in Washington within the last 10 years recovered some few of my greatgrandmother’spapers, which she gave me. My great grand mother died at “Monticello” when I was twoyearsold1828 she is buried there, but I do not know in what part of the grave yard she was laid.
I have letters of her’s written to her grand sons “Nicholas P. Trist” and “H. B. Trist,” when they were youths in La living at “BayouLaFourche” with their mother & stepfather “Mr Tournillon,”my father attended the “College D’Orleans,” where he recd some prizes signed by “Mr D’Avezac” the President of the College. My father came to Monticello when he was 17 to go to the “University of Va,” which not being yet opened “PresidentMonroe” gave him hisa“commission”2 for “WestPoint,” & he had to take it “fromLa” altho borninVa, because Va had her quota of Cadets at “WestPoint.”

My great grand mother never returned to La she [. . .] lived at “Pen Park” with her niece “Mary House,” and at “Birdwood” Albemarle Co, and she boarded afterwards at Mr Diver’s “Farmington” AlbemarleCo; her letters are dated from all of these places—she must have lived with her mother Mrs HousePhila & also in “New Jersey,” until after her son “Hore Browse Trist” was grown and married, soon after which he must have moved to “Charlottesville” where my father “NicholasTrist” was born my greatgrandmother “Brown,” accompanied her daughter to La where many of her children lived married & died, she did notoutlivedmy “grandmother,” who died in my fathers arms; he had been sitting by her all the evening at the tea table; & she had spoken
to him of the satisfaction she took in his engagement to “Virginia Randolph” for my grand mother Trist, had a great love & admiration for my grand mother “Martha Randolph”—they were old friends and she said to my father “it will be a great comfort to me when I die to leave my “little Mary” to be brought up by yourwifeVirginiaRandolph.” soon after this, my grand mother retired & my father was sitting reading, when Mr Tournillon came in hurriedly and said “go to your mother she is ill,3 while I send “Browse” for the Dr;” my father hurried to her room, & found that she had stepped out on the Piazza, he went immediately
to her, she requested him to help her to her bed, but she died inhisarms, before she reached her room; she had great beauty and a very superior mind, she
had brought my father & uncle up with the greatest care, instilling into them, the highestprinciples, and great devotion to eachother; they never seemed to know or feel any seperateinterests; she also trained them to have the most remarkably “easy graceful manners,” for which
they were noted as children, and as men; she taught them to cultivate their hearts as the greatest source of happiness; after “honor & integrity;” they absolutely idolisedtheir mother, and next to her they loved eachother; my father always said “that to displease his mother was their greatest dread”; they were also much attached to their grandmother “Brown,” and never forgot her tenderness and her indulgence to them; my father was 4 years old & my uncle 2 years when they lost their father, he died of yellow fever in N.O. August 29th18041805.

My grand-mother some years after his death married Mr “Philip Livingston Jones”—he had known and loved her as the beautiful “Mary Brown”, and went to Louisiana to renew his addresses when she was a widow. My Grandmother finally married [“]Mr Jones”4 and the “Philip” in my father’s name, came from a request made by Mr Jones that it might be added, to the Nicholas; as Browse had the 3.namesHoreBrowseTrist

MS (Martha J. Trist Burke Commonplace Book, privately owned).

Elizabeth Trist’sjournal (ViU: Papers of the Trist, Randolph, and Burke Families, Mss 10487) was published within
Journeys In New Worlds: Early American Women’s Narratives, William L. Andrews, ed. (Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1990).